Charles Barkley was one of few broadcasters not surprised that the Lakers lost to the Mavericks this Tuesday night, despite the fact that the Dallas squad wasn’t counting on co-stars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, who are both recovering from their respective injuries. The purple and gold lost 118-97 at the American Airlines Center.
Amid the TNT host’s beef with JJ Redick, who last month criticized the narrative in which the NBA is covered by the media, Chuck saw this as the perfect opportunity to stick in the dagger. The Hall of Famer didn’t hold back.
“The Lakers proved to what I keep saying: the Lakers stink, plain and simple. The Lakers are not a good team. They got zero athletic ability,” Barkley assured, while his co-host Shaquille O’Neal admitted to be surprised that the Los Angeles club didn’t dominate this matchup.
Charles Barkley on the Lakers:
“They scapegoated Russell Westbrook, Frank Vogel, DLo and Darvin Ham… they should stop blaming everybody else for their shortcomings… the Lakers just stink, plain and simple..” pic.twitter.com/94pgQJI23l
— Beastbrook (@Beastbr00k0) January 8, 2025
It all started when coach Redick was asked about the downfall of the NBA ratings a couple of weeks ago, and the former Suns star didn’t like what the rookie tactician had to say about the way the media covers the basketball league. Even though the former player didn’t mention ESPN or TNT, Chuck took the comments personally.
During last Thursday’s edition of Inside the NBA, Chuck ranted on JJ as host Ernie Johnson tried his best to steer the conversation back to highlights. “[Redick] said something about we’re the reason people ain’t watching this crappy product we got.
“… yeah, us, like we’re out there jacking up 100 threes a night,” Barkley started. “JJ, you come for the king, you better not miss. Because I can get you, brother. Remember, I got your Lakers games. You can’t hide them flaws they got. You’re just a dead man walking.”
Even though the press wanted to keep this rivalry alive, the Los Angeles coach chose not to engage further in this public spat with the TNT broadcaster, despite Chuck openly criticizing the Lakers team and even questioned his job security on live television.
“I didn’t make it all the way through the clip, I got to be honest with you,” the 40-year-old said last Friday before the Lakers defeated the Hawks.
